Wellington, Fla. – March 10, 2017 – Blue skies and sunshine welcomed the third day of equestrian competition during Week Nine of the Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF). The lush Stadium Derby Field at Equestrian Village was the perfect setting for Friday mornings $5,000 USHJA Pony Hunter Derby.

Round one proved to be a challenging test for the 65 young riders, but not for Kat Fuqua who seamlessly piloted Somekindawonderful, Iwasaki & Reilly’s medium New Forest Pony gelding, over the course earning the high score of 89.

Kat Fuqua and Somekindawonderful

They returned for the handy round with another solid performance to earn an 82 and a total score of 171, earning them the overall championship ribbon and blanket.

“The course was really fun,” said Fuqua. “I really liked being able to jump on the grass in the derby field and all the jumps were really nice. After going off course with my other pony in the handy, I came back into the ring determined and focused on the course.

“Somekindawonderful is really sweet,” continued Fuqua. “We got him during indoors this last year and I look forward to showing him with my trainer Liz Reilly of Makoto Farm for the rest of WEF alongside my other large pony and horse.”

Kat Fuqua and Somekindawonderful in the Handy Round

Winning second in the jog, and reserve champion overall was Libbie Gordon and Astro Boy, a medium Welsh pony gelding owned by Elle Gibbs. The pair was close behind Fuqua with a total score of 168, earning an 85 in round one and a score of 83 in the handy.

Libbie Gordon and Astro Boy

“I’ve been riding Astro Boy since the beginning of this year. Max is what we call him around the barn, and he is very sweet to be around both on the ground and when you’re riding him. He is a lot of fun to jump, and riding on the grass is always fun because the feel is different from a normal show ring. It’s always nice to have a class on a field every once in a while.

“My first two rounds on other ponies didn’t go as planned and the ring seemed to be really spooky,” noted Gordon. “But I was really happy with how my round on Max ended up, and I feel like showing is about having fun and this course was!”

Libbie Gordon and Astro Boy

Augusta Iwasaki and Caleche, a large Oldenburg pony owned by Laura Barrett-Gurtis, finished third with a total score of 167 after an 81 in round one and the highest score in round two, earning an 86.

Augusta Iwasaki and Caleche

Rounding out the top four was Abigail Gordon and her own small Welsh pony Farmore State of the Art with an 84 in round one and an 81 in round two, totaling 165.

Abigail Gordon and Farmore State of the Art

The USHJA Pony Hunter Derby supports the USHJA Foundation, whose vision is creating an equestrian community that embraces, supports, and protects the people and horses who give their all to the sport. The USHJA Foundation supports the equestrian community with educational resources, financial aid, preservation of equestrian history, and inspiration.

Friday night of Week Nine at WEF will mark the arrival of the Dare to Dream event presented by GumBits. The Dare to Dream event supports the USHJA Foundation’s Making a Dream Grant Program. This program offers unique opportunities in the hunter/jumper sport to USHJA members who face various challenges including resource limitations and other difficulties such as mental, physical, or emotional disabilities. The program has helped six riders make their dreams a reality since its start in 2011.